5 Staging Tips for a Fast Home Sale

Staging can make or break a home sale, helping you find the right buyer quickly rather than letting your home sit on the market month after month. Follow these budget-friendly, tried-and-true tips to move your home quickly. The first four goals revolve around decluttering, while the last goal will turn you into a handyman or woman long enough to get your home sold.

Decluttering

A lot of staging revolves around one fact: your clutter prevents buyers from seeing the true potential in your home. Clutter can make the difference between a pleasant home tour and an instant aversion to the space. Decluttering and cleaning is the biggest (and simplest) step in readying your home. When you're beginning to declutter, focus on these 4 goals:

• Clean up. Hide or trash paper clutter, including mail, flyers, bills, and newspapers or magazines. Your house will instantly look cleaner.
• Store your household toys out of sight. The visual noise level in your house will go down exponentially.
• Pare down your pictures. Family images can block a buyer from envisioning their own family in your space.
• Box up excessive décor. Less is more when it comes to the décor pieces you place around your home. They block your buyer's ability to assess the home's potential.

Use your tools and expertise

Make a few quick and affordable spruce-ups to entice buyers. Think about how nice your home was when you bought it—returning it to that state is your goal. You don't have to engage in an all-out remodeling initiative; all you need is a paintbrush, screwdriver, and a few supplies. With those in hand, follow these tips to whip your home into sale-ready shape.

• Return colorful, painted rooms to a neutral color like white or cream. Boisterous colors can detract from a room's natural beauty.
• Touch up any walls or painted spaces that have become dingy or chipped. Pay attention to interior and exterior doors and high traffic areas.
• Check out the hardware in your home and tighten up pieces that have loosened over time. Replace any non-working or damaged pieces.
• Consider whether your kitchen and bathroom drawer and cupboard pulls may be dated, as well as your interior and exterior door handles. Replacing these can be a very inexpensive upgrade that really makes your home shine.

Avoid staging plans that make your home practically unlivable or empty your bank account. Instead, declutter the space, paying special attention to the four key areas, and then perform a few simple fix-ups. Before you know it, excited buyers will be beating a path to your door.